University of Minnesota Athletics
Kloos Inks Deal with Minnesota Wild
3/29/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Hockey
MINNEAPOLIS (GopherSports.com) - Gopher Hockey senior captain Justin Kloos has signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the Minnesota Wild, beginning next season. Kloos served as Minnesota's captain for the last two years and helped the Maroon & Gold to regular-season conference titles in each of his four years with the program.
He'll report to the Iowa Wild of the American Hockey League on an Amateur Tryout Agreement (ATO) for the remainder of the season.
"Playing hockey at the University of Minnesota has meant the world to me, and I can't say thank you enough to everyone who has supported us over the last four years," Kloos said. "It's been an unforgettable ride, and I'm so thankful I was able to share it with my teammates, our fans and everybody that shares our passion for this program."
A native of Lakeville, Minn., Kloos was one of the nation's top scorers in his college career - leading all active Big Ten players and ranking third among active NCAA players with 150 career points (63 goals, 87 assists). The senior ranks 28th all-time at Minnesota in points and tallied 30 or more points in each of his four seasons including 43 as both a junior and senior. A First Team All-Big Ten selection this year and a Second Team All-Big Ten selection as a junior, Kloos never missed a game in his college career - making 155 consecutive appearances since arriving on campus. He was also honored as the program's John Mariucci Most Valuable Player Award as a senior while also sharing the Elwin "Doc" Romnes Leadership & Sportsmanship Award with fellow senior Jake Bischoff.
A four-year letter winner, Kloos was a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree.
"I can't say enough great things about Justin Kloos and the way he represented our program as our captain," Minnesota head coach Don Lucia said. "He has been an outstanding leader, an incredible teammate and one of the best representatives our program and school has ever seen. He has a bright, bright future ahead of him, and we are very excited for him to join the Minnesota Wild."
As a member of the 2016-17 Gopher Hockey senior class, Kloos helped the Maroon & Gold win the first four Big Ten regular-season conference championships in league history and set a new NCAA record with the program's sixth-straight overall regular-season conference title. The class made three trips to the NCAA tournament including a national championship game appearance in 2014 while their final NCAA tournament berth stands as Minnesota's 37th - also an NCAA record.
Kloos joins former Gophers teammates Mike Reilly and Nick Seeler as well as Minnesota alums Erik Haula and Jordan Schroeder on the Wild roster.
-Pride On Ice-
